Sakura Rain
by pensquared
Summary: Just a sappy little fluffy one-shot about Kenshin and Kaoru.


One day, my friend Alice gave me this task: "Quick, write a story with rain in it!" Twenty minutes later, I sent her this. Pointless? Yes. Time consuming? Yes. Amusing? Yep.  
  
:: Sakura Rain ::  
  
"Kenshin, hurry up!"  
  
Kenshin smiled at the sight of Kaoru, so joyfully skipping through the rain of sakura petals. How young and girlish she actually is. "Kaoru-dono, sakura petals are to be enjoyed slowly. Sessha believes the best way to view them is in peace and quiet, because..."  
  
Kaoru ran back to him and playfully stuck out her tongue. "It may be so, mister-know-it-all, but I'm hungry!" She pointed eagerly to the basket in Kenshin's hand. "So come on!"  
  
Kenshin chuckled and suddenly picked up the pace, leaving Kaoru the catch up. They found a secluded area surrounded by the pink trees and set down an old cloth. Kaoru squealed with delight when Kenshin finally put the basket down. "Sushi, sashimi, and even unagi! And even sake? You really outdid yourself, Kenshin!"  
  
Kenshin smiled. "Arigato, Kaoru-dono. But you know, sake is only for sipping while contemplating poetry about the sakura blossoms."  
  
"Mggt," Kaoru muttered from a mouthful of rice. She poured two small cups of sake and swallowed her sashimi. "I say it's for happy days. Cheers, Kenshin!"  
  
_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_  
  
Kenshin quietly put the empty dishes back into the basket. Lastly, he placed the empty sake bottle in. Who would've thought that Kaoru would have such a taste for sake? If she and Sanosuke were engaged in a drinking contest, he'd put his money on Kaoru.  
  
He looked over his shoulder at Kaoru, who was peacefully curled up, asleep. She was a perfect picture of serenity. In fact, she herself was a picture in the picture. Kenshin reached over to tap her awake, but thought better of it. Let the girl sleep.  
  
In fact, Kenshin also felt a bit drowsy. He blinked furiously, ashamed at not being able to even take a few cups of sake. Then again, he hadn't had any for over a decade. Still...  
  
A cold pinprick on Kenshin nose awoke him. What? He sat up and looked around. The sky had turned dark, and rain was starting to fall. He shamefully groaned: he had dozed off. How long had it been? Long enough for rainclouds to cover the once azure sky. There, another raindrop fell on his nose. And another one on his cheek. "Kaoru-dono, wake up!"  
  
Kaoru stirred and sneezed. "WA-CHOO! Ugh... eck, it's raining!"  
  
Kenshin quickly gathered up the sheet and basket and offered his arm to help Kaoru stand up. "Sessha is sorry for having fallen asleep, Kaoru- dono."  
  
"It's alright, Ken A-CHOO!"  
  
A shamed feeling rose quickly. Hadn't Kaoru just recovered from a nasty cold a week ago? And he had let her been exposed to wind and now, rain. "Let's go, Kaoru-dono."  
  
They started jogging towards the dojo. The drizzle picked up rapidly, coming down now in torrents. Kaoru started sneezing more and more. Suddenly, she collapsed onto the ground.  
  
"Kaoru-dono!" Kenshin kneeled down. "Are you okay?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm A-CHOO fine!"  
  
Kenshin wiped a few strands of wet hair out of her eyes and cringed. Oh, god, why was her cheek so hot? Even under this freezing rain, it burned. Her face was flushed into dramatic shades of pink and white. "Kaoru- dono..."  
  
Kaoru tried to stand but fell back onto her heels. "Oops. . . wait . . ."  
  
In one scoop, Kenshin picked up the rain-soaked Kaoru. "Gomen nasai, Kaoru- dono, but we really have to go home." He started running as fast as he could without jolting her.  
  
Kaoru wrinkled her nose. "No, really, I think I can ... ACHOO... walk..." She weakly protested, but soon slumped into Kenshin's arms.  
  
Kenshin rushed into the dojo and dropped Kaoru off in front of her door. "Kaoru-dono, please change into some warm clothing."  
  
Neglecting his own water-saturated gi, he rushed to boil water. While waiting, he frantically rummaged through the drawers until he found the paper packet, labeled "fever" in Megumi's neat handwriting. He poured the powder into a cup and filled it with hot water. Quickly, he put it on a tray and almost ran to Kaoru's room. "Kaoru-dono, are you done changing?"  
  
"H-ACHOO-hai."  
  
Kenshin opened the door. Kaoru was curled up on her futon under blankets, shivering. He handed her the cup, saying "Kaoru-dono, here's Megumi's medicine."  
  
She sipped it all down. "Ah, arigato, Kenshin."  
  
"Sleep a bit, Kaoru-dono." Kenshin tucked the shivering Kaoru in tightly. Soon, she fell asleep.  
  
Kenshin looked lovingly down at the little girl, once again asleep peacefully, breath coming in and out softly. Little girl, perhaps, but she had stolen his heart in a way no woman could. He bent down and lightly kissed her on the cheek before retreating from her room. "Goodnight, kioshii."  
  
~~End~~  
  
So out of character, so out of time sequence, so never going to happen! :D But oh well. 


End file.
